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Hey TL,
I've been trying to get myself to finally pick up cello for the past year or so. I finally got around to doing some research, but then I realized that I have no idea what I'm doing.
So I call upon the wisdom of TL:
Should I buy a cello first before looking for an instructor, or talk to a tentative instructor then look for a cello (perhaps with that instructor if he/she is willing)?
Maybe I don't even need an instructor? (Though I heard that without a good teacher, I'll pick up bad habits at a frightening rate).
How should I find a good cello? Should I start with a cheap one, or are the cheap ones just too bad to play for anybody?
My university does offer lessons for instruments, but the prices for that come out to about $60 an hour, and I don't know if it's worth it if I have never played the instrument before. Or maybe it is better to start with a good instructor right off the bat...
Here's some background information in case it would help gauge the answers:
I play guitar and piano, and have a decent knowledge of music theory already.
I'm a university student, so transportation would be an issue. However, when I am at home (summer + winters), I would be able to drive to someone's house.
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No, talk to a potential instructor as they will be able to asses your needs better than any of us here. Even if you don't study with them they can help you.
As for a good introductory cello...you're probably looking at 1500-2000 USD for a 'decent' one... but if you really want to get nitpicky, a 'good' cello in my estimation will be in upwards of 8000 USD (a friend of mine spent 12K on his). I'm speaking for classically oriented purchases of course. You could buy one for about 250 USD and that might be decent enough for what you need but honestly idk your situation well enough to give sound advice. Talk to a teacher about your needs.
p.s. you'll also need to buy a case, and if you plan on protecting it from all temperature/weather considerations, a hard case can run you anywhere from 45-800 USD.
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Are you re-learning how to play, or are you learning from scratch?
I'm currently a music undergrad for viola/violin performance.
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In anything I am trying to learn or pick up, I never go out and buy expensive materials initially. If I were you, I would purchase a used one and learn from there. After a year or so, if you are still interested in playing the cello, maybe you can go and buy yourself a nice one.
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Stop being a pussy and learn the fucking cello if that's what you want to do.
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Rental is a very good option for obtaining a cello before deciding if you want to go further in it. My cello is $2000 +bow+case ($2500ish in total) and i'm only a 15 year old participating in a parent forced hobby (not that i don't enjoy it, just noting that it is forced by my mother) who does not want to go to university for cello. Those things are expensive. Start small. also, you won't get much better than $60 an hour, that's very average for cello lessons.
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Also, you should use the Szuzki books, they are meant for 5 year olds learning with their parents, so don't bother doing any background reading, but they feature a steady progression of beginner pieces, and later concert pieces, to learn from. $6.95 a book until you reach the highest levels.
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Also, one more thing, as for cases, the hard ones cost the most and do protect from bumps, but they are very bad at insulation, if your climate is cold, i recommend a soft one.
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10379 Posts
get a teacher otherwise you'll be trash and you won't realize why or how to improve
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It's simple, rent a cello and take 1-2 lessons. Then ask yourself again.
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Talk to CFA kids + some advisors in the department first. They really shouldn't be assholes to enthusiasts and talking is free. Get resources and then look for a cello (amateur student chinese/german cellos around 2k-8k should be fine for right now, or even cheaper)
A good cello is up to you, usually around the ranges you're looking for prices tend to correlate pretty decently with quality but it's hard to be like "this is a good cello" without playing it. You want sonority/clarity/easiness of traveling up & down the fingerboard in any position/etc.
Performing music at this level shouldn't depend so much on music theory as it does absolute mental discipline and patience. A teacher initially helps you to get the concepts/musical thoughts into place as a regular habit, then keeps you straight on that path as a coach more or less. IF you're seriously thinking of practicing cello up to performing the standard repertoire decently (as in, can play it/record it/play it back on a CD without wanting to kill yourself), probably set yourself up with an instructor for at least 1-3 months. You'll need it to hit the ground running instead of trying to fumble through positions/what a bow grip is/etc.
After you have everything down and the major points of improvement start depending on CONSISTENT minimization of tension, maximization of clarity/sonority, good intonation, and anticipation of tempi/phrasing/etc. (AKA habits), then maaaaaaaybe you can stop relying on a teacher so much IF you have the ability to focus for hours at a time just to improve technique bit by bit. But even then I'd be careful since recordings/teachers can catch way more shit than you can possibly imagine.
The central concepts are limited and simple, but the fact that you have to control every goddamn portion of your body so as to make sure that you're playing your absolute best technically on every note is a bitch. That's why like every music performance major gets in at least 2 hours of scales/etudes before even trying their concert piece.
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As a violin teacher, I would strongly suggest you rent one before you buy. Stringed instruments are a huge investment and if you can find a decent rental place, it's a really great alternative to buying a cheap instrument. Finding a reasonable cello for under $500 is going to be a headache, but not impossible.
Because of how unnatural stringed instruments are (as opposed to piano/guitar), you will need an instructor in order to play comfortably and easily. Lesson rates vary wildly depending on location: In big cities, the prices can be anywhere from 50-200 an hour depending on their background while in smaller towns, it can be 15-25 an hour. If you happen to live near a reputable music school or conservatory, the best thing would be to hire a graduate/doctoral student who has experience teaching from scratch.
Just keep in mind that teaching the first few formative years of string playing is very different from teaching someone who already knows the basics. Not every good player will be an appropriate teacher for a complete novice.
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I've been learning cello since elementary school. I think you can actually get a not bad cello for under $2000 USD, though certainly not something you'll want several years in. But it's good to start small, if you get a cello above your level you won't be able to utilize its potential fully and appreciate its quality. As for teachers, I spent several years learning under college students. Given your background and age, you'll obviously progress much faster, but music students are still more than capable of teaching the essential technique and form and guiding you through pieces that aren't top-level. I don't know what exactly you mean when you talk about instructors provided by the university, but I think you mean the cello professors there, in which case I would say no, they would probably prefer to teach students who are majoring in performance or even only those who are in graduate school.
Good luck with your search! Learning cello's a lot of work, but you'll enjoy it more and more as you get more familiar with the instrument and once your knowledge of "fingerboard geography" is sufficient you can play anything you want! Also, consider joining or creating some kind of chamber group/orchestra in the future, they're a lot of fun!
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Definitely get a teacher. Guitar and piano are different from stringed instruments in that once you figure out how to play a note it all sorta comes together. Trying to get a note to sound properly on a violin or cellos is fucking impossible for a beginner. There's also a "right way" to learn how to play those instruments, which isn't really true for (electric) guitar, since that's such a young instrument.
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EPT
